Convertible gas heating apparatus

ABSTRACT

A convertible heating appliance is disclosed in which a common boiler unit is adapted to universally receive either a grate vent assembly or a stack assembly. As a result, the boiler unit can be packaged individually and stored for subsequent utilization with either assembly. The boiler comprises a cubical housing formed from four rectangular sidewalls. The interior of the boiler includes a combustion chamber having a heat exchanger and a flue collector mounted thereon. The flue collector comprises a shortened truncated hood which is adapted to sealingly register with a mating hood extension formed on the grate vent assembly or the stack assembly. A plurality of vanes are peripherally spaced about the top periphery of the four sidewalls. Beside operating as air spoilers for the heater inlet, the vanes function as the primary means of supporting the grate vent or stack assembly. The grate vent assembly comprises an apertured cover plate having the mating hood extension attached to the bottom side thereof directly below the aperture. Baffle plates are attached to the outer edges of the cover plate to form a rectangularly shaped baffle. The cover plate is adapted to be mounted over the boiler housing so that the hood extension mates with the truncated flue hood of the boiler. The rectangularly arranged baffle plates are adapted to be attached to the peripherally spaced vanes mounted on the boiler housing. The stack assembly also comprises an apertured cover plate having the mating hood extension attached to the bottom side thereof directly below the aperture. A stack is mounted on the top side of the cover plate to extend over the aperture for providing a draft pasageway for the combustion exhaust. Either a draft hood or vent cap is attached to the top of the stack, depending on whether the boiler is to be used indoors or out. The cover plate also comprises peripheral side edges which are adapted to be attached to the peripherally spaced vanes mounted on the boiler housing.

United States Patent [191 Ramey CONVERTIBLE GAS HEATING APPARATUS [75] Inventor: Robert M. Ramey, North Hollywood, Calif.

[73] Assignee: Teledyne, Inc., Los Angeles, Calif.

[22] Filed: Jan. 10, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 216,586

[52] US. Cl. 126/307 A, 126/85 B, 122/494r [51] Int. Cl. F221) 37/36 [58] Field of Search 126/350 13, 350 R, 307 A, 126/307 R, 85 B, 85 R; 122/494 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,623,458 11/1971 Block 126/307 R 3,601,099 8/1971 Vaillant et a1. 126/307 A 3,537,431 ll/1970 Ramey 1 126/85 R 3,118,430 l/l964 Russell et al 126/350 R FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 820.462 9/1959 Great Britain 126/350 R Primary ExaminerWilliam F. ODea Assistant ExaminerPaul Devinsky Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Harold L. Jackson; Stanley R. Jones; Joseph W. Price [57] ABSTRACT [111 3,797,477 [451 Mar. 19, 1 974 formed from four rectangular sidewalls. The interior of the boiler includes a combustion chamber having a heat exchanger and a flue collector mounted thereon. The flue collector comprises a shortened truncated hood which is adapted to sealingly register with a mating hood extension formed on the grate vent assembly or the stack assembly. A plurality of vanes are peripherally spaced about the top periphery of the four sidewalls. Beside operating as air spoilers for the heater inlet, the vanes function as the primary means of supporting the grate vent or stack assembly.

The grate vent assembly comprises an apertured cover plate having the mating hood extension attached to the bottom side thereof directly below the aperture. Baffle plates are attached to the outer edges of the cover plate to form a rectangularly shaped baffle. The cover plate is adapted to be mounted over the boiler housing so that the hood extension mates with the truncated flue hood of the boiler. The rectangularly arranged baffle plates are adapted to be attached to the peripherally spaced vanes mounted on the boiler housing.

The stack assembly also comprises an apertured cover plate having the mating hood extension attached to the bottom side thereof directly below the aperture. A stack is mounted on the top side of the cover plate to extend over the aperture for providing a draft pasageway for the combustion exhaust. Either a draft hood or vent cap is attached to the top of the stack, depending on whether the boiler is to be used indoors or out. The cover plate also comprises peripheral side edges which are adapted to be attached to the peripherally spaced vanes mounted on the boiler housing.

24 Claims, 10 Drawing Figures PATENIED IIAR I 9 I974 SHLU 2 BF. 4

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CONVERTIBLE GAS HEATING APPARATUS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION l. Field of the Invention The present invention relates generally to gas burning appliances and more particularly to the boiler units utilized in such appliances.

2. Description of the Prior Art The vast majority of heated swimming pools are heated by gas-burning appliances. Conventional pool heaters usually comprise a housing having an airvented passageway leading into a combustion chamber.

. A bank of burners is located across the base of the combustion chamber for providing pressurized gas which mixes with the vented air for combustion within the chamber. A plurality of heat exchange water carrying tubes extends across the top of the combustion chamber for absorbing the heat energy from the chamber to heat the water flowing therethrough. A flue collector is mounted over the heat exchange tubes and is connected to a stack for exhausting the products of combustion from the combustion chamber.

Another type of pool heater which has been recently developed and is receiving widespread acceptance is the so-called stackless heater." This heater was originally developed by the present inventor, and described in U. S. Pat. No. 3,537,431, issued on Nov. 3, 1970. The stackless heater has the same componentsas the conventional heater described above with the exception that the. stack is replaced by a baffle member extending around the outlet of the flue collector. The baffle member is also located adjacent the inlet in order to equalize the pressure conditions at the inlet and the exhaust. Thus the baffle member functions to ensure proper combustion within the combustion chamber.

Besides operating just as efficiently as the conventional pool heaters with the stacks, the esthetics of the stackless heater are more pleasing, since it has a lower profile and does not have an unsightly stack extending above the apparatus.

However, the introduction of this type of heater has presented certain problems, not only to the manufacturers of these heaters, but to the distributors and retailers of these appliances. The reason for this is that, prior to the present invention, the construction of the stacked heaters was completely different than that of the newer stackless heaters. Because of this, separate tooling had to be procured, separate assembly lines had to be maintained, and separate orders had to be taken in order to offer the two heaters to the public.

The distributors and retailers of these pool heaters faced an even bigger problem. Because the distributors were not able to predict how many of each type heater they would sell, they had to keep an inordinate amount of both types in order to ensure satisfying both demands. Because various manufacturers are now making both types of heaters, this problem has become more acute for the distributors who must carry a number of brand name heaters.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The presentinvention obviates the above-mentioned shortcomings by providing a convertible pool heater having a common boiler unit that is adapted touniversally receive either a stack assembly or a grate vent assembly. Because of this, only one type of boiler unit need be manufactured, packaged, and stored. The stack and grate vent assemblies of the present invention are especially adapted to be mounted on the common boiler unit. Moreover, these assemblies can be attached to the boiler unit either at the warehouse, or on the job site. As a result, these assemblies can be separately packaged after manufacture and stored at the warehouses as individual items.

The primary advantage of the present invention is that only one type of boiler unit need be manufactured by the producer. This enables the producer to lower his tooling costs, reduce the number of assembly lines, and reduce the over all expenses concomitant therewith.

Another important advantage of the present invention is that the distributors need to keep only one type of boiler unit in their inventory. The only variable items that need to be stored are the grate vent and stack assemblies. Since these assemblies are relatively smaller than the boiler units, a great savings in inventory space is realized.

The features of the present invention which are believed to be novel are set forth with particularity in the appended claims. The present invention, both as to its organization and manner of operation, together with further objects and advantages thereof, may best be understood by reference to the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. I is -a perspective view of a convertible heating apparatus in a low profile configuration;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the heating apparatus in a stacked configuration;

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of the low profile configuration of the heating apparatus with the grate vent assembly separated from the boiler;

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional fragmentary view of the heating apparatus taken along lines 4-4 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the top cover plate of the grate vent assembly;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged exploded. view of one of the vanes interconnecting the grate vent assembly to the boiler;

FIG. 7 is a cross sectional fragmentary view of one of the vanes taken along lines 7-7 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a cross sectional fragmentary view of the stacked configuration of the heating apparatus, with the stack assembly separated from the boiler;

FIG. 9 is a plan view of the top cover plate of the stack assembly; and

FIG. 10 is a cross sectional view of the stack assembly having a vent cap mounted on the stack.

Referring now to the drawings, FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a heating apparatus, generally indicated by arrow 10, shown in two configurationsFIG. I shows the heating apparatus 10 in its low profile configuration, while FIG. 2 shows the apparatus 10 in its stacked configuration.

Returning to FIG. 1, the heating apparatus 10 comprises two main assemblies, the boiler assembly 11 includes four rectangular sidewalls 15 cooperating with a bottom wall I7 (see FIG. 3) to form a cubical housing having an opened top side.

A thermostat housing 19 is mounted on one of the sidewalls 15, over a pair of pipe connections 21 which, in turn, extend into the interior of the boiler 11. The

top edges of the side walls are biased inwardly at 23 to form the bottom portion of a peripheral air inlet 25 for the boiler.

The periphery of the grate vent assembly 13 or housing comprises four C-shaped baffle plates 27 mounted about a square grate 29. The lower sections of the baffle plates 27 form the upper portion of the air inlet.

' A plurality of vanes 31 are intermittently spaced about the periphery of the air inlet to primarily function as air spoilers to create turbulent conditions at the mouth thereof. A detailed description of the components recited above will be given hereinafter.

Referring now to FIG. 2, the heating apparatus 10 comprises the boiler assembly 11 having a flue stack assembly 33 mounted thereon. In accordance with the present invention, the boiler assembly 11 is identical to the one shown in FIG. 1. Therefore, like numerals will be given to like parts.

The flue stack assembly 33 comprises a cover plate 35 having a skirt 37 formed about the periphery thereof. The bottom edge of the skirt 37 cooperates with the sidewall surfaces 23 to form the peripheral air inlet of the apparatus 10.

An aperture 39 is formed in the cover plate 35 and is adapted to be covered by a flue stack 41 attached to the top side of the cover plate 35. The upper extremity of the stack 41 is covered with a draft hood 43 for indoor use. In this configuration, the hood is adapted for connection to a conventional stack which extends through the roof of the building housing the apparatus 10.

As shown in FIGS. 3-5, the boiler assembly 11 is open ended on the top side thereof which functions as a passageway for atmospheric air to enter the interior of the boiler housing. This passageway continues down the one side 45 of the boiler interior and is terminated by the louvered plates 47 for providing communication with the interior of a combustion chamber 49.

A plurality of burners 51 are intermittently spaced across the bottom area of the chamber 49. These burners 51 are mounted on a manifold 53 which, in turn, is connected to a source of pressurized gas. The pressurized gas exists through orifices 55 formed in the burners 51 to mix with the secondary air admitted from the atmosphere to combust within the combustion chamber 49. Although the embodiment described utilizes pressurized gas, other mediums, such as oil, can also be utilized as the fuel.

The combustion chamber is enclosed on its lateral sides by four fire walls 57 which, in turn, are insulated from the exterior with a plurality of insulation panels 59.

A heat exchanger 60 is mounted on top of the combustion chamber 49 and comprises a plurality of fin tubes 63 extending across the top of the chamber 49 to cover substantially the entire area thereof. The ends of the tin tubes 63 are interconnected to form a continuous passageway for the water. The two extremities of the continuous conduit are connected to the pair of pipe connections 21.

A flue collector 65 is mounted over the heat exchanger 60 to collect the products of combustion from the combustion chamber 49. The flue collector 65is in the form of a truncated hood with the top portion thereof having a rectangular aperture 67 formed thereon. r

As previously described, the side walls 15 are biased inwardly at 23 to form a portion of the air inlet. The inner edges of the sidewalls 15 are also biased upwardly to form a rim 69.

The grate vent assembly 13 further includes a cover plate 71 having four brackets 73 interconnecting the plate 71 with the C-shaped baffle plates 27. The cover plate 71 also includes a rectangular aperture 75 formed therein. The bottom side of the cover plate 71 has a pair of rails 76 welded thereto for slidably receiving a hood extension 77. The top edge of the hood extension 77 forms an aperture which registers with the aperture 75 of the cover plate 71. The bottom edge of the hood 77 extension forms an opening which is adapted to extend over and mate with the upper portion of the flue collector 65 for forming a gas tight seal.

The cover plate 71 also has a pair of air baffle plates 79 and 81 welded to the bottom side thereof. The plate 79 includes a hooked flange 83 at both of its ends while the plate 81 includes a hooked flange 85 at its outer end. The plates 79 and 81 are positioned in such a manner that their respective flanges are adapted to fit over the rim 69 to be supported thereby.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the grate 29 is supported by four legs 87 which are connected to the top side of the cover plate 71.

The support of the grate vent assembly is providedby attaching the baffle plates 27 to the vanes 31 which, in turn, are fixedly mounted on the sidewalls 15 of the boiler housing. FIGS. 6 and 7 more clearly show this construction.

As shown in these figures, each vane 31 is formed into a V-shaped plate having a bottom edge 89 which is adapted to rest on the biased surface 23 of the sidewalls 15. A flange 91 extends inwardly from one of the bottom edges 89 and includes a bore 93 which mates with a bore 94 formed on the surface 23. A metal screw 95 is provided to extend through the bores 93 and 94 .of the material and bent in a plane parallel to the respective sidewall 15. The one side of the flange 99 is cut away to enable the flange 99 to move forward as described hereinafter. The flange 99 also includes a bore 101 and a bottom edge 103. As shown in FIG. 7, the bottom edge of a C-shaped baffle plate 27 is adapted to rest on a V-shaped edge 105 formed from the removal of the cut out material and the bending of the flange 99.

The front wall of the baffle plate 27 which is spaced from the flange 99 includes a bore 107 which mates with the bore 101 for receiving a metal screw 109. As the screw 109 is tightened and bottomed out, the flange 99 is drawn toward the baffle plate 27. During this movement, the bottom edge 103 of the flange 99 is drawn over the bottom edge or rim 127 of the baffle plate 27 to secure the plate 27 against an upward vertical movement.

This vane structure and the method of connection is the same for either heater configuration. The only difference is that in the low profile configuration, the

vanes 31 are attached to the baffle plates 27, whereas in the stacked configuration, the vanes 31 are attached to the rim 128 on the skirts 37 of the cover plate 35.

The flue stack assembly 33, which is shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, comprises a housing'including the top cover plate 35 having the L-shaped skirts 37 formed on the periphery thereof. The aperture 39 is formed on the cover plate 35 which also includes the stack 41 mounted thereof, directly over the aperture 39. As stated previously, the draft hood 43is mounted on the stack 41 for indoor use.

A pair of parallel guide rails 1 11 are attached to the bottom side of the cover plate 35 for receiving a hood extension 113. The hood extension 113 is similar in construction to the hood extension 77 of the grate vent assembly 11. That is, the top edge of the hood forms an aperture which registers with the aperture 39 of the cover plate 35. The bottom edge of the hood extension 113 extends a small distance beyond the assembly and forms an opening which is adapted to extend over and mate with the upper portion of the flue collector 65.

As with the grate vent assembly 11, the cover plate 35 of the flue stack assembly 33 also includesa pair of air baffle plates 114 and 115 welded to the bottom side thereof. The plate 114 includes a hooked flange (not shown) at both of its ends for fitting over the rim 69 to be supported thereby. The plate 115 also includes a hooked flange 117 formed at its outer end for the same purpose.

The flue stack assembly 33 is mounted on the boiler assembly 1 1 in the same manner as the baffle assembly 13. That is, after the lower end of the truncated hood 113 is positioned over the flue collector 65 and the baffle plates 114 and 115 are mounted on the rim 69, the L-shaped skirts 37 of the cover plate are attached to the vanes 31 in a manner similar to the attachment of the baffle plates 27. That is, the foot portion of each Lshaped skirt 37 is positioned to rest on the V-shaped edge 105 formed on the vane 31. A plurality of bores (not shown) are provided on the skirts 37 which function to mate with the bores 101 of the vanes 31. After which, themetalscrew109 is inserted into each pair of mating bores to. connect the two elements together. In this operation, as the screw 109 is tightened and bottomed out, the bottom edge 103 of the flange 99 is drawn over the foot portion of the skirt 37 to secure the cover plate 35 against an upward vertical movement.

FIG. 10 shows the stack assembly 33 in which the stack 41 has a vent cap 119 mounted thereon for outdoor use. The rest of the stack assembly 33 is identical to that shown in FIGS. 2, 8 and 9.

OPERATION The boiler assembly 11 operates in a conventional manner regarding the combustion and the water heating. That is, the pressurized gas discharged from the burners 51 mix with secondary air entering from the passageways to combust within the combustion chamber 49. The heat energy passing around the heat exchanger is transferredtathe finJubes 6 to raise the temperature of the water passing therethrough. The products of combustion are then collected in the flue collector and is exhausted either through the grate vent assembly 13 or the stack assembly 33.

The main advantage of the heating apparatus 10 is that the same boiler assembly 11 can be utilized in the two configurations commonly used today. As a result, the common boiler assembly 11 can be separately manufactured, packaged, sold and stored. The same is true for the individual boiler top assemblies 13 and 33. As discussed previously, this greatly reduces the inventory that one must maintain. If a low profile configuration is sold by the retailer, he can unpackage a common boiler 11 and the grate vent assembly 13 and either connect them together at the store or at the installation site. If the stacked configuration is desired, the same boiler assembly 11 is utilized and connected to one of the stack assemblies 33 in the same manner.

It should be noted that various modifications can be made to the apparatus while still remaining within the purview of the following claims.

What is claimed is: i

1. In a convertible heating assembly having at least one wall portion housing a combustion chamber with an exhaust aperture; burner means extending into the combustion chamber for combusting a fuel mixture and heat transfer means communicating with the combustion chamber for receiving the heat energy generated.

thereby, the improvement comprising in combination therewith:

a pair of interchangeable combustible exhaust product members adaptable to be mounted above the combustion chamber exhaust aperture;

a grate vent assembly including a grate cover plate and a grate exhaust hood comprising one of the interchangeable combustible exhaust product members;

a stack assembly including a stack cover plate and a stack exhaust hood comprising the other interchangeable combustible exhaust product members;

guide means on the grate vent assembly for relatively movable alignment of the grate exhaust hood with both the combustion chamber exhaust aperture and the grate cover plate;

guide means on the stack assembly for relative movable alignment of the stack exhaust hood with both the combustion chamber exhaust aperture and the stack cover plate;

means for connecting either of the exhaust product members to the wall portion above the exhaust aperture whereby an air intake to the heating assembly is formed between the wall portion and the exhaust product member including vane members having movable flanges for creating air turbulence and interlocking the exhaust product member and wall portion.

2. In a convertible heating assembly having at least one wall portion housing a combustion chamber with an exhaust aperture; burner means extending into the combustion chamber for combusting a fuel mixture and heat transfer means communicating with the combustion chamber for receiving the heat energy generated thereby, the improvement comprising in combination therewith;

a pair of interchangeable combustible exhaust product members adaptable to be mounted above the combustion chamber exhaust aperture;

a grate vent assembly including a grate exhaust hood and outer grate support housing comprising one of the interchangeable combustible exhaust product members; I

a stack assembly including a stack exhaust hood and outer stack support housing comprising the other interchangeable combustible exhaust members, and means for connecting either of the exhaust product members to the convertible heating assembly above the exhaust aperture including at least one locking vane having a movable flange for supporting and locking the outer support housing to the wall portion while creating turbulence in at least some of the intake air to the heating assembly.

3. The invention of claim 2 further including guide means on each exhaust product member for aligning the respective exhaust hood with the heating assembly exhaust aperture.

4. The invention of claim 2 wherein the locking vane includes a support edge adjacent the movable flange for mounting the outer support housing.

5. The invention of claim 4 wherein the locking vanes are peripherally located adjacent the wall portion and are the only means for securing an interchangeable exhaust product member above the exhaust aperture.

6. The invention of claim 2 wherein each interchangeable combustible exhaust product member includes a cover plate with air baffle plates mounted on one side.

7. The invention of claim 2 wherein the heating assembly further includes a flue collector hood terminating in a plane adjacent the end of the wall portion, the respective grate and stack exhaust hoods being adjustable toalign with the flue collector hood, and extending only a relatively small distance beyond their respective grate vent and stack assemblies.

8. In a convertible heating assembly having at least one wall portion housing a combustion chamber with an exhaust aperture; burner means extending into the combustion chamber for combusting a fuel mixture and heat transfer means communicating with the combustion chamber for receiving the heat energy generated thereby, the improvement comprising in combination therewith:

a pair of interchangeable combustible exhaust product members for mounting individually above the combustion chamber exhaust aperture;

a grate vent assembly including a grate exhaust hood comprising one of the interchangeable combustible exhaust product members;

a stack assembly including a stack exhaust hood comprising the other interchangeable combustible exhaust product member;

guide means on the grate vent assembly for relatively movable alignment of the grate exhaust hood with the combustion chamber exhaust aperture;

guide means on the stack assembly for relatively movable alignment of the stack exhaust hood with the combustion chamber exhaust aperture, and

means for securing an interchangeable combustible exhaust product member to the convertible heating assembly above the exhaust aperture including locking vanes having movable flanges for lockingly coacting with an interchangeable exhaust product member and for creating turbulence in at least a portion of the intake air to the heating assembly.

product 9. The invention of claim 8 further including a supporting rim connected to the wall portion and at least 6 one hooked flange adopted to coact with the rim mounted on each of the interchangeable exhaust product members.

10. The invention of claim 8 wherein the locking vanes are peripherally located adjacent the wall portion and are the only means for securing an interchangeable exhaust product member above the exhaust aperture.

11. The invention of claim 8 wherein each interchangeable combustible exhaust product member includes a cover plate with air baffle plates mounted on one side.

12. The invention of claim 8 wherein the heating assembly further includes a flue collector hood terminating in a plane adjacent the end of the wall portion, the respective grate and stack exhaust hoods being adjustable to align with the flue collector hood, and extending only a relatively small distance beyond their respective grate vent and stack assemblies.

13. The invention of claim 8 wherein each locking vane includes a support edge adjacent themovable flange and each exhaust product member includes a coacting rim adapted to rest on the support edge and lockingly coacting with the movable flange.

14. The invention of claim 11 wherein each cover plate includes a pair of guide rails that permits the respective exhaust hood to move relative to the cover plate.

15. The invention of claim 8 wherein the heating assembly further includes a flue collector hood terminat ing in a plane adjacent the end of the wall portion, the respective grate and stack exhaust hoods being adjustable to align with the flue collector hood, and extending only a relatively small distance beyond their respective grate vent and stack assemblies.

16. In a convertible heating assembly having at least one wall portion housing a combustion chamber with an exhaust aperture; burner means extending into the combustion chamber for combusting a fuel mixture and heat transfer means communicating with the combustion chamber for receiving the heat energy generated thereby, the improvement comprising in combination therewith:

a pair of interchangeable combustible exhaust product members adaptable to be mounted above the combustion chamber exhaust aperture;

a grate vent assembly including a grate exhaust hood and outer grate support housing with a lower edge capable of being mounted above the combustion chamber comprising one of the interchangeable combustible exhaust product members;

a stack assembly including a stack, a stack exhaust hood and outer stack support housing with a lower edge capable of being mounted above the combustion chamber comprising the other interchangeable combustible exhaust product member;

a flue collector hood terminating in a plane adjacent the end of the wall portion, the respective grate and stack exhaust hoods capable of being aligned with the flue collector hood and respectively terminating in planes adjacent the lower edges of their respective grate vent and stack housings; and

means for connecting either of the exhaust product members to the convertible heating assembly above the exhaust aperture.

17. The invention of claim 16 wherein the means for connecting includes locking vane members.

18. The invention of claim 16 wherein the locking vane members include a movable flange for lockingly coacting with an interchangeable exhaust product member.

19. The invention of claim 16 wherein each interchangeable combustible exhaust product member includes a cover plate with air baffle plates mounted on one side.

20. The invention of claim 16 further including guide means on the grate vent assembly for relatively movable alignment of the grate exhaust hood with both the combustion chamber exhaust aperture and the outer grate support housing.

21. The invention of claim 16 further including guide means on the stack assembly for relatively movable alignment of the stack exhaust hood with both the combustion chamber exhaust aperture and the outer stack support housing.

24. The invention of claim 19 wherein each cover plate includes a pair of guide rails that permits the respective exhaust hood to move relative to the cover plate.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No- 3, 797,477 Dated March 19, 1974 Inventor(s) Robert Ramey It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Column 2 line 61, after "assembly 11" insert, "and the grate vent assembly 13. The boiler assembly 11'' Signed and sealed this 16th day of July 1974.

(SEAL) Attest; v

MCCOY M. GIBSONQJR. C. MARSHALL DANN v Attesting Officer Commissioner of Patents USCOMM-DC 8037 U.S GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: Ill. 0-

F QRM PO-IOSO (10-69) 

1. In a convertible heating assembly having at least one wall portion housing a combustion chamber with an exhaust aperture; burner means extending into the combustion chamber fOr combusting a fuel mixture and heat transfer means communicating with the combustion chamber for receiving the heat energy generated thereby, the improvement comprising in combination therewith: a pair of interchangeable combustible exhaust product members adaptable to be mounted above the combustion chamber exhaust aperture; a grate vent assembly including a grate cover plate and a grate exhaust hood comprising one of the interchangeable combustible exhaust product members; a stack assembly including a stack cover plate and a stack exhaust hood comprising the other interchangeable combustible exhaust product members; guide means on the grate vent assembly for relatively movable alignment of the grate exhaust hood with both the combustion chamber exhaust aperture and the grate cover plate; guide means on the stack assembly for relative movable alignment of the stack exhaust hood with both the combustion chamber exhaust aperture and the stack cover plate; means for connecting either of the exhaust product members to the wall portion above the exhaust aperture whereby an air intake to the heating assembly is formed between the wall portion and the exhaust product member including vane members having movable flanges for creating air turbulence and interlocking the exhaust product member and wall portion.
 2. In a convertible heating assembly having at least one wall portion housing a combustion chamber with an exhaust aperture; burner means extending into the combustion chamber for combusting a fuel mixture and heat transfer means communicating with the combustion chamber for receiving the heat energy generated thereby, the improvement comprising in combination therewith; a pair of interchangeable combustible exhaust product members adaptable to be mounted above the combustion chamber exhaust aperture; a grate vent assembly including a grate exhaust hood and outer grate support housing comprising one of the interchangeable combustible exhaust product members; a stack assembly including a stack exhaust hood and outer stack support housing comprising the other interchangeable combustible exhaust product members, and means for connecting either of the exhaust product members to the convertible heating assembly above the exhaust aperture including at least one locking vane having a movable flange for supporting and locking the outer support housing to the wall portion while creating turbulence in at least some of the intake air to the heating assembly.
 3. The invention of claim 2 further including guide means on each exhaust product member for aligning the respective exhaust hood with the heating assembly exhaust aperture.
 4. The invention of claim 2 wherein the locking vane includes a support edge adjacent the movable flange for mounting the outer support housing.
 5. The invention of claim 4 wherein the locking vanes are peripherally located adjacent the wall portion and are the only means for securing an interchangeable exhaust product member above the exhaust aperture.
 6. The invention of claim 2 wherein each interchangeable combustible exhaust product member includes a cover plate with air baffle plates mounted on one side.
 7. The invention of claim 2 wherein the heating assembly further includes a flue collector hood terminating in a plane adjacent the end of the wall portion, the respective grate and stack exhaust hoods being adjustable to align with the flue collector hood, and extending only a relatively small distance beyond their respective grate vent and stack assemblies.
 8. In a convertible heating assembly having at least one wall portion housing a combustion chamber with an exhaust aperture; burner means extending into the combustion chamber for combusting a fuel mixture and heat transfer means communicating with the combustion chamber for receiving the heat energy generated thereby, the improvement comprising in combination therewith: a pair of interchangeable combustible exhaust product memBers for mounting individually above the combustion chamber exhaust aperture; a grate vent assembly including a grate exhaust hood comprising one of the interchangeable combustible exhaust product members; a stack assembly including a stack exhaust hood comprising the other interchangeable combustible exhaust product member; guide means on the grate vent assembly for relatively movable alignment of the grate exhaust hood with the combustion chamber exhaust aperture; guide means on the stack assembly for relatively movable alignment of the stack exhaust hood with the combustion chamber exhaust aperture, and means for securing an interchangeable combustible exhaust product member to the convertible heating assembly above the exhaust aperture including locking vanes having movable flanges for lockingly coacting with an interchangeable exhaust product member and for creating turbulence in at least a portion of the intake air to the heating assembly.
 9. The invention of claim 8 further including a supporting rim connected to the wall portion and at least one hooked flange adopted to coact with the rim mounted on each of the interchangeable exhaust product members.
 10. The invention of claim 8 wherein the locking vanes are peripherally located adjacent the wall portion and are the only means for securing an interchangeable exhaust product member above the exhaust aperture.
 11. The invention of claim 8 wherein each interchangeable combustible exhaust product member includes a cover plate with air baffle plates mounted on one side.
 12. The invention of claim 8 wherein the heating assembly further includes a flue collector hood terminating in a plane adjacent the end of the wall portion, the respective grate and stack exhaust hoods being adjustable to align with the flue collector hood, and extending only a relatively small distance beyond their respective grate vent and stack assemblies.
 13. The invention of claim 8 wherein each locking vane includes a support edge adjacent the movable flange and each exhaust product member includes a coacting rim adapted to rest on the support edge and lockingly coacting with the movable flange.
 14. The invention of claim 11 wherein each cover plate includes a pair of guide rails that permits the respective exhaust hood to move relative to the cover plate.
 15. The invention of claim 8 wherein the heating assembly further includes a flue collector hood terminating in a plane adjacent the end of the wall portion, the respective grate and stack exhaust hoods being adjustable to align with the flue collector hood, and extending only a relatively small distance beyond their respective grate vent and stack assemblies.
 16. In a convertible heating assembly having at least one wall portion housing a combustion chamber with an exhaust aperture; burner means extending into the combustion chamber for combusting a fuel mixture and heat transfer means communicating with the combustion chamber for receiving the heat energy generated thereby, the improvement comprising in combination therewith: a pair of interchangeable combustible exhaust product members adaptable to be mounted above the combustion chamber exhaust aperture; a grate vent assembly including a grate exhaust hood and outer grate support housing with a lower edge capable of being mounted above the combustion chamber comprising one of the interchangeable combustible exhaust product members; a stack assembly including a stack, a stack exhaust hood and outer stack support housing with a lower edge capable of being mounted above the combustion chamber comprising the other interchangeable combustible exhaust product member; a flue collector hood terminating in a plane adjacent the end of the wall portion, the respective grate and stack exhaust hoods capable of being aligned with the flue collector hood and respectively terminating in planes adjacent the lower edges of their respective grate vent and stack housings; and means for conNecting either of the exhaust product members to the convertible heating assembly above the exhaust aperture.
 17. The invention of claim 16 wherein the means for connecting includes locking vane members.
 18. The invention of claim 16 wherein the locking vane members include a movable flange for lockingly coacting with an interchangeable exhaust product member.
 19. The invention of claim 16 wherein each interchangeable combustible exhaust product member includes a cover plate with air baffle plates mounted on one side.
 20. The invention of claim 16 further including guide means on the grate vent assembly for relatively movable alignment of the grate exhaust hood with both the combustion chamber exhaust aperture and the outer grate support housing.
 21. The invention of claim 16 further including guide means on the stack assembly for relatively movable alignment of the stack exhaust hood with both the combustion chamber exhaust aperture and the outer stack support housing.
 22. The invention of claim 18 wherein the locking vane members are peripherally located adjacent the wall portion and are the only means for securing an interchangeable exhaust product member above the exhaust aperture.
 23. The invention of claim 18 wherein each locking vane member includes a support edge adjacent the movable flange and each exhaust product member includes a coacting rim adapted to rest on the support edge and lockingly coacting with the movable flange.
 24. The invention of claim 19 wherein each cover plate includes a pair of guide rails that permits the respective exhaust hood to move relative to the cover plate. 